A Transformative Year at IIAS

The IIAS was the perfect environment to further develop my research as a visiting researcher from Japan. From the moment I arrived and as Annemarie van Leeuwen gave me a warm tour of the building, I knew that I had come to the ideal place. After being greeted by the friendly staff and fellows, I was provided a desk, access to the stunning library of Leiden University, full support and information on my visa, and most of all, a vibrant community that I am still in touch with. The institution also took care of my accommodation in Leiden, sparing me the hassle of finding a room on my own. I also had invaluable opportunities to communicate with the academic community of Leiden University thanks to the institutional ties and warm invitations of Professor Doreen Müller (Institute for Area Studies).

With regular meetings, workshops, and lectures by fellows and visiting scholars, IIAS provided a platform to revitalise the community. Each fellow’s contribution plays an important role here. I treasured these discussions and debates, as their perspectives inspired my research in many ways. I also liked the fact that the staff too participated often in these discussions. 

My research on ‘museums as media’ is interdisciplinary and requires access to many cross-cultural fields. Being in the Netherlands, one of the leading countries engaging in decolonial practices in museums for almost a year, I had the luxury of visiting them regularly and interviewing the museum staff. Although museums were my main research sites, it was essential to place them in a broader context and consider them through a variety of lenses. With fellows specialising in different disciplines, such as sociology, history, cultural heritage, global studies, and education, IIAS was the ideal place to do so.

One rare opportunity that IIAS offered me was the chance to collaborate with Italian museums, part of a newly implemented exchange programme designed to connect IIAS researchers with other European universities and cultural institutions engaged with Asian Arts and Culture. With the initiative of Laura Erber, the coordinator of IIAS, I was able to conduct research at the Museum of Orientale Art Turin (MAO) during the summer of 2023. I am grateful to Davide Quadrio (director), Anna Musini and Francesca Filisetti (curatorial and management), Chiara Vittone (press office), and all other staff for generously permitting access to their resources and for granting me their interviews.

Building on this, I was also able to connect with scholars at the University of Turin. Professor Alessandra Consolaro (Department of Oriental Studies), Professor Daniela Moro and Professor Sonia Favi (Department of Humanities) accepted me into their community, and even invited me to present at their symposium. These collaborations have opened up a new field for me.

As an institute where researchers in Asian Studies worldwide gather as a community, IIAS provides a sense of diversity and density in Asian studies. Today, among social instabilities and conflicts around the world, such communities and networks act as bridges and goodwill mediators.

Mariko Murata is a Professor in the Faculty of Sociology, Kansai University, Japan. She received her PhD from the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, the University of Tokyo. She specializes in media and cultural studies, and museum studies. She was a fellow at the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS) from Oct. 2022 to Sept.2023.